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What Does That ALSC Committee Do?

ALSC Committee Survey Results 2018

In 2018, the ALSC Organization & Bylaws Committee surveyed ALSC committee chairs on the duties, skills, and communication necessary for the individual work of the committee. The results of the survey are below.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: The Committee is working on an advocacy webinar and partnering with the Public Awareness Committee on a program for the ALSC Institute.

Other information: Members are expected to actively engage on social media (esp. Twitter) and should be familiar with using hashtags and retweeting. Members are expected to share information and resources related to advocacy from their personal accounts, particularly during National Library Legislative Day. Committee members are required to participate in the ALSC blog by posting at least twice throughout the year. Committee members are also expected to contribute to the advocacy column for the ALSC journal, Children and Libraries. Blog and writing for the column are on a rotating schedule with committee members signing up in advance. Members are also required to actively participate in committee business via email and attend all meetings.

Extra duties for members beyond committee work: Work with like-minded organizations to promote services, programs and research for underserved children and their caregivers in library communities. Members are also responsible for writing monthly blog posts related to the committee’s mission scheduled via Dropbox, which can require collaboration with other partners. Members review, evaluate and select the “Light the Way” grant recipient.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: As a group we advocated for and oversaw the Committee's name change to better reflect our charge. We also moved to a co-chair structure. We are very proud of the newly revamped and weighted review process for selecting “Light the Way” Grant recipients. We are also proud of our increased communication, including monthly internal newsletter emails for members of the committee, telephone conferences, and a deeper connection to the grant recipients. We have successfully solicited articles and updates from recent grant recipients to promote their good work on the ALSC blog. We are proud of significantly increasing the profile of the “Light the Way” grant opportunity by sharing previous grant recipients' work via the ALSC blog and sharing the grant application process, both through assistance from ALSC and ALA and via members' own professional networks.

Other information: The Committee is passionate about reaching underserved children and their caregivers in library communities through innovative programs, services and partnerships. Helpful experience would include interaction with underserved library communities or an interest in reaching these communities, the ability to commit to writing two blog posts per year, and beginning long-term partnerships and other projects.

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings as needed

Consistency of time commitment: 2-3 hours a month

Busiest time of the year:

Committee communication: ALA Connect, Email, Google Docs, Slack

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: We developed a non-fiction/fiction pairing tween booklist that is well-rounded, diverse, and current: Mismatched Pairs.

Other information: We meet monthly for one hour via Slack chat to discuss ongoing projects, as well as at the All Committee meeting during conferences. We rely on strong programmers and communicators and members who are able to volunteer extra time to do research, reach out to colleagues, and work within subcommittees. A healthy sense of humor is a plus!

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings for review and discussion

Consistency of time commitment: > 25 hours per month

Busiest time of the year: November, December

Committee communication: Conference Calls, Email, Google

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: Publishing a polished and useful booklist of Notable titles as well as creating an environment where respectful, thoughtful discussion is modeled, practiced and valued.

Other information: There is a great deal of reading required of members. Members should expect to be inundated by books and will require strong organizational skills to both keep up with the reading and the sorting/storing of books. That said, knowing the full year's publishing is fascinating and educational so the rewards are high. Members should feel comfortable with Google docs and similar cloud-based communication. Members are required to write concise annotations so writing skills, and a desire to improve one's writing are a plus. Members who are comfortable asking questions, communicating regularly with the chair and other committee members, growing their own skills as book critics, and getting to know the ALSC definitions related to Notable books will find themselves deeply satisfied and engaged in this good work.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: Our quarterly lists of notable digital media.

Other information: Now that the Notable Children’s Digital Media has expanded their charge to include apps, it's important for committee members to be well-versed and comfortable using apps across multiple platforms.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: The 2018 NCR committee has gone above and beyond in seeking out titles that were not submitted by producers and evaluating them for inclusion on our Notable list.

Other information: You will spend a lot of time with headphones on. Listening during your commute does not tend to be enough listening time to get all assignments done. There is a significant ramping up period in which new members will be doing research to learn the correct critical terms and how to identify examples of each.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: After lengthy discussion, our group came to a unanimous decision; one of our members worked on the guidelines for future ALSC Distinguished Service Award Committees

Other information: It was valuable to have members with a wide range of experience within ALSC, so they had a ready roster of worthy nominees that had made substantial contributions to ALSC.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: The ALSC 101 session has become a great way to connect with old and new members and highlights all of the ways that someone can get involved with ALSC (beyond simply committee work). Also, we started hosting member dinners at conferences which has been a great way to connect.

Other information: There is an ongoing time commitment because of we send postcards each month to new members and we have monthly meetings. ALA Annual and Midwinter require more attention since there are obligations. Marketing experience and communication experience is a plus for this committee since this committee is involved in getting the word out and for being the first "face" a new member "meets" through physical and online communication.

Extra duties for members beyond committee work: Committee members may be tasked with interviewing attendees at conference. This is dependent on an Oral History member attending conference, as it is a virtual committee.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: We're examining the role this committee will play in the future of ALSC. However, a personal triumph is having ALSC agree to digitize the recorded interview tapes.

Other information: The role and charge of the committee is under review and likely to change.

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: We are really excited to review the new ALSC website and suggest structural and content-related improvements.

Other information: As found in the committee's function statement: WAC provides direction, guidance, and support regarding the currency and relevance of content on the ALSC website and the organization of content therein to ensure positive user engagement with the site. The committee works with ALSC staff and committees to ensure that content on the ALSC website addresses ALSC priorities set forth in the Strategic Plan.

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings as needed

Consistency of time commitment: > 25 hours per month

Busiest time of the year: January, October, November, December

Committee communication: Email

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing:

Other information: The Batchelder Award Committee is charged with selecting the most outstanding translated book of the year. In addition to expertise in evaluating high quality children's books, familiarity with international children's literature is highly desirable for members of this committee. Experience with evaluating translated books is also valuable.

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings as needed

Consistency of time commitment: > 4 hours per month

Busiest time of the year: May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Committee communication: ALA Connect, Email

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: We have just started our year of evaluating eligible titles.

Other information: Members need to be prepared to read, analyze, and discuss both illustrations and text and to assist with organizing the annual Celebración of the winning titles and promoting these titles. Members also need to seek out eligible titles as not all titles will be sent to them by publishers.

Busiest time of the year: June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Committee communication: Email

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing:

Other information: Ability to LISTEN to and respect the input of others; diplomacy; ability to set goals (daily, weekly, monthly) and prioritize; stick-to-itiveness; critical analysis of pictures and words, EXCELLENT written and verbal communication skills, patience, word processing and excel spreadsheet abilities.

Committee communication: Email, Private email, not work email because of confidentiality and FOIA

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: Establishing a consistent level of communication and timely response by committee members

Other information: To be successful and complete all the reading required for this committee a member must be willing to set aside personal time for reading in a consistent way and guard that time from encroachment from everything else demanding attention. It's difficult to catch up once you get behind. It's challenging rereading and notating books during the holiday season, so it's important to share the time commitment needed with friends and family, especially if the Midwinter conference falls early in January. Committee members must love, respect, honor and delight in children's literature. You could quickly become resentful of the time needed for all the reading and reviewing if you aren't 'all in'. It's an honor to serve, but a huge responsibility as well. It helps immensely if committee members have experience in, and love, working with children and their caregivers. It's a joy to work with a group of children of varying ages and the award year's books. Their perceptions, thoughts and insights are invaluable and inform how I read and evaluate the books. Book reviewing experience, of any kind, is a plus, but even those without this can develop this skill with practice. Good listening and interpersonal skills, patience and honoring every book nominated are a must when working with a large group that is sequestered for hours at a time. It helps that every committee member is working toward the same goal: selecting the very best book for children. It's a tremendous experience, very fulfilling and a highlight of a librarian's life!

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings as needed

Consistency of time commitment: While the slowest months (the start of the year and late summer) might dip below 25 hours a month, the volume at the beginning and end of the year merits listing this committee as >25 hours per month.

Busiest time of the year: January, October, November, December

Committee communication: ALA Connect, email

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing:

Other information: Prospective members should know that as audiobooks are increasingly delivered digitally, the 2018 committee has had to navigate multiple audio formats, downloading and storage methods, and that this trend will, in all likelihood, continue. Comfort with technology is a big plus for serving on this committee.

Meetings at Conference: All Committee meeting and additional meetings as needed

Consistency of time commitment: > 50 hours per month

Busiest time of the year:

Committee communication: Email

Extra duties for members beyond committee work:

The Chair is proud of accomplishing: Choosing the 2018 Sibert Medal winners!

Other information: You will need to read as many informational texts as you can find during the year. This includes books sent to you, but also seeking out titles that the committee does not receive. You do not need to have an expertise in nonfiction in order to serve on this committee, but you should have an open mind about topics for consideration and formats for informational books.

Virtual committee? NoMeetings at Conference: All-committee meeting + additional meetingsConsistency of time commitment: 1-2 hours per month.Busiest time of the year:Committee communication: ALA Connect, Video conference (Skype, Google Hangouts), Email, Google DocsExtra duties for members beyond committee work: Building Partnerships Committee works together in subcommittee groups between face-to-face conference meetings to accomplish various tasks, such as researching and creating tools on best practices for library partnerships. Members also share responsibility of writing a monthly ALSC Blog entry.The Chair is proud of accomplishing: We created a new list of innovative local, state and national organizations whose resources complement or support Youth Services, which is being updated regularly.Other information: Members currently meet for an online chat every other month.

Virtual committee? YesMeetings at Conference: NAConsistency of time commitment: 2-3 hours per monthBusiest time of the year: NovemberCommittee communication: Email, wikiExtra duties for members beyond committee work: The Chair is proud of accomplishing: At the request of the ALSC President we created two lists in response to the 2016 Election - Working Together for Justice and Unity. Kindness. Peace.Other information: Knowledge of recent K-8 books is a plus, ability to work independently and asynchronously, thoughtfulness and ability to read and follow directions.

Priority Group VII: Professional Development

Virtual committee? YesMeetings at Conference: NAConsistency of time commitment: irregular, but less than 1 hour per monthBusiest time of the year:Committee communication: Conference Calls, EmailExtra duties for members beyond committee work: The Chair is proud of accomplishing: It's rewarding to be able to give helpful input to the journal editor and be a (small) part of the process of putting it together.Other information: Although this is an "editorial" committee, members are not required to edit journal articles, just advise. Editing and writing are options, if committee members are interested, but are not required.

Virtual committee? YesMeetings at Conference: NAConsistency of time commitment: 1-2 hours per month.Busiest time of the year: NovemberCommittee communication: Email, Monthly Slack chat.Extra duties for members beyond committee work: Writing 1 - 2 blog posts each year on pertinent topics. This could include reaching out to other professionals. Reviewing the ALSC Digital Resources page and researching replacement articles. New for 2018 will be reviewing the application to the Media Mentorship Leadership Award.The Chair is proud of accomplishing: Reviewing and updating the ALSC Digital Resources page and restarting the webinar series.Other information: Due to the different time zones, not all members are able to join the monthly meeting. Someone who is comfortable with asynchronous work and able to follow through on assignments would do well on this committee.

Virtual committee? YesMeetings at Conference: NAConsistency of time commitment: 1-2 hours per month.Busiest time of the year: Committee communication: ALA Connect, Email, Google Docs, Google Hangout chatExtra duties for members beyond committee work: The Chair is proud of accomplishing: In 2017, the Education Committee developed two webinars. The first was about how to successfully write and submit a proposal to teach an ALSC course or webinar. The second was about opportunities to become involved with ALSC and how to participate actively in ALSC.Other information: Committee members should be proficient with Google programs, namely Google Drive, Google Docs, and Google Hangouts. The Education Committee uses these programs to communicate and develop projects.

Virtual committee? YesMeetings at Conference: NAConsistency of time commitment: 1-2 hours per monthBusiest time of the year:Committee communication: Video conference (Skype, Google Hangouts), Email, Google DocsExtra duties for members beyond committee work: Blog point person, working with Membership Committee, working with ALSC Mentoring GroupsThe Chair is proud of accomplishing: Two different multi-part webinar series related to managing children's servicesOther information: Our work is highly project-based, so it's important for members to be willing to volunteer for projects, take on things they may have to research or learn more about, and be willing to jump in and go with the flow.

Virtual committee? NoMeetings at Conference: All-committee meeting + additional meetingsConsistency of time commitment: Not consistentBusiest time of the year: January, October, November, DecemberCommittee communication: ALA Connect, Conference Calls, EmailExtra duties for members beyond committee work: Promoting the Bechtel Fellowship to other ALSC members.The Chair is proud of accomplishing: The committee created a series of ALSC Blog posts with interviews of past Bechtel fellows.Other information: Committee members should be familiar with or be willing to learn about special collections of children’s literature.